HIIIII! I am baaaaack! California was ama~zing! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to go to San Diego. *Cries* L.A.'s traffic driving south to San Diego was INSANE. Since I wasn't traveling alone, I couldn't drag my families to go where I wanted to goâone of the cons of not traveling alone, but I still had a blast in L.A. with my family and it wouldn't have been the same if I traveled alone. :) Hopefully one day I'll go to San Diego, maybe when I am brave enough to travel alone. I'll be posting more pic of my trip to L.A. in my insta later! :D
Anyhow, in this chapter, I will be introducing more about the mers and the houses. I plan to design a map of the mer world and the ocean names in mer language. Though I don't know where to post it... I plan to post it on insta and tumblr, but I was also thinking of making a story glossary (Where I'll put mer terms, mini characters profile, names of mer's anatomy like the flukes, name of houses, and maps) as a chapter here, that way readers can always go check out and refresh their memory.
We hit 50K reads! WEEEEEEE! I still can't believe this story got so many reads! <3 I'll make a deal with you guys, if we hit 5k votes, I will make a youtube video formally introducing myself. :D
As for the fandom names, it seems a few of you like the name Clovers. So I shall bestow you guys, Clovers! Comment AYE! if you're a Clover!
As always, thank you for your votes (Votes means alot to wattpad writers! <3 ), comments (I try to read all of them and I love every single one them) and all your support! This story wouldn't have happened without you guys!
Enjoy~
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Tristen
Cold water enveloped me, water quickly surged into my gills and my membranes immediately plugged my nose airway. I yanked my eyes open and gasped as I regain from my few minutes of unconsciousness. When the foams of the water disappeared, hundred of mers' eyes surrounded me that were filled with concern.
"Ahu!"Â Â A pair of hands grabbed my lax shoulders. "Are you okay?"
I waved Gale away. "I'm fine." I take in my surrounding. The sun was setting over the glass dome, painting the sky orange. All the mers huddled on a crowd before me, we were behind the wall of corals, hidden. My eyes drifted over the mers. It seemed that everyone was here, including Nixie who was holding Jakob's hands with a relieved smile.
Moa, the pregnant merwoman rushed over. "My prince!" she signed. Her dark almond eyes scanned me as she took my face, inspecting my injuries like a mother she was. Her long, dark hair trailed down her back in a braid. Dark, thick tattoos covered her entire torso. So much so, one of her arms was inked completely black. Jewelries glittered across her faceâseptum piercing on her nose, piercing on a brow and large gauges stretched her lobes. Moa brushed my hair off my face. "Are you in pain? Please sit!" She fussed me over to a flat rock where I sat while she fussed over my injuries.
I grabbed Moa's callused hands, "Please, stop fretting." I turned to assure the mers that continued to watch on. "I am well."
"Then why the hell do you look like a spotted octopus?" Gale glared.
"I did what I had to distract the fay from questioning me further." I smirked. "Luckily, he had quite the short fuse." It had almost been fun taunting Burn.
Moa narrowed her eyes. "Well, that's stupid of you."
Gale hissed in warning. "Moa!"
I laughed despite the fact that she could've been punished for her honesty, but if anyone couldâshe could. She was a general of my father's sea legion which she trained and led the soldiers to battle for millennia. Moa hailed from west of Mir also known as the pacific ocean. She was from a tribe called Kanaloa and they are famous for their brutal warriors and primitive ways of living and to further my point, they live among the volcanoes of the ring of fire in the indonesia ocean. She was a mer with a rare power. She was a fire mer, immune to being burnt like most Kanaloain warriorâbut unlike the rest of the tribe, she is able to control fire.
Calling them a tribe is a stretch. Their fierceness allowed them to survive against all the high houses' attacksâwhich some of my brethrens were responsible for their attempt to rob their part of the seaâand Kanaloa tribe grew large and powerful enough to be a potential House. Kanaloain warriors fought back against my breathens with such savagery that my father had found admirable. My father offered them to be a House, but the warriors refused to be tied to politics, thus, King Neptune declared them an independent tribe to be left alone, giving them amenities and in return, their aid to the Sea Legion when called. The warriors agreed since there was nothing they love more than a good fight. Moa had joined the sea legion, despite her tribe's refusal to be tied to politics, and she didn't become general of the sea legion for being kind. After four milenia, she was now a retired general, she had recently settled down after meeting her shi-amare and was carrying their first child.
Moa made a noise at the back of her throat. "I do not apologize. It would be unwise if you're injured." A mother indeed, I thought. She continued signing, "You are our prince and our leader. Without the fluke, we would have no direction." Her words echoed with years worth of millenia.
I would be a fool if I didn't heed her advice. "Alright. I'll be more cautious." I smiled at her.
Moa eyes narrowed. "I mean it, my prince." Her black tail moved, flickering her pointy fin that equaled as a weaponâa deadly point shot out from the notch between her flukes, shining green like a scarab beetle with the rest of her tail.
I smiled guiltily, that she had to fight once more because of my ignorance. "Of course,"
A new voice moved closer, "So what happened in there?" A soldier from the sea legion asked. The young merman, Halvar's pale hair were shaved short and dark brows slashed above his piercing eyes, indicating he is from the Thule sea known as the Arctic ocean.
I opened my mouth to answer but Gale stopped me with a hand on my shoulder. All the mers stopped and a ripple traveled from above. I looked at the source. What appeared to be a small metal, caged cube no bigger than my hand attached to a line that dangled from above. A sleek, metal wand was inside the cage and was attached to a cable that was encased in steel. It was a sonar, protected in a steel cage, waiting to pick up any words that traveled from our mouth. My jaw clenched as I searched beyond the globe for any sign of dark fays.
When there was none, I signed to Gale in Thalassa's hands with anger. "Can you destroy it?"
Gale nodded and swam up to further inspect the sonar.
"Ah, ah, I wouldn't do that." A familiar man's voice echoed from the sonar.
Kol.
There was no mistaking the smooth lilt of his voice.
Gale asked arrogantly. "And why is that?"
"The sonar would emit a strong electrical shock if touched, killing anything in a mile radius. Now, we wouldn't want that, do we?"
Gale wrenched himself back from the weapon.
I looked to Nixie, gifted for detecting when one is lying. She still had her power since it wasn't that strong to be turned off by the glamour casted by the dark fay.
Nixie nodded, partially hiding behind Moa. "He's telling the truth."
The mers gaspedâsome cried and some hissed. I ran a hand through my hair thinking. That means we can't speak or they will know about Red or my identity. I couldn't let that happen. We would have to resort to signing. I wondered if they could still see us communicating with the sonar...
A laugh echoed from the sonar and then Kol clicked off.
I slowly swim over to the sonar to closely inspect it.
Gale signed in warning, "Ahu,â"
"It's fine. I just want to see if there's a camera." I signed back. I searched the silver sleek machine. There was no black dot or any sort of a clear screen to indicate that they're watching us. I turned to the mers, "It's safe to sign, they can't see us."
Another older merwoman with bright orange tail floated above the others, calling attention. We all looked to her. She was a renowned warrior, Clodovea. Her tan skin was withered from wears and scars, being older than a millennia had turned her dark hair grey. She signed. "Mers are the only one who knows Thalassa's hands, it's too intricate for the fays to learn and understand. We should be safe, regardless if they can see us."
Jakob floated up, signing with abrupt motion, arguing. "They're not stupid. The fays managed to learn our spoken language, who is to say they won't learn our sign as well?"
Clodovea scowled. "Not if we sign fast and lazy, they will never pick it up, plus, we aren't going to be here long for the fays to learn it." She agitatedly swished her multiples flukes that imitated a ball of spikes tied to the end of her tail. "We have the girl with the strange hair, the protector from the seaâshe will save us all."
I frowned at that, not liking the way their eyes filled with fervor of hope for someone who was thrusted into a new world, unknowingly of the responsibilities that was to weigh on her shoulders. It would break her.
It nearly did for me.
I straightened myself up. I need to take care of this before they pin all their hopes onto Red. I emitted a sonar ripple that my power could weakly allow and a wave rippled strongly through the mers. Soon, everyone's attention went to me, then I signed sternly. "It is not Meredith's duty to save us all. She is only mortal. Meredith is helping Gale's shi-amare to call for a rescue team for us."
Halvar jerked upward from the mer crowd and signed as his icy blue eyes rounded. "Bodhi?"
Gale nodded. "Yes, comrade."
Halvar threw his hands up as he cried outloud. "We are screwed!"
"Hey!" Gale yelledâforgetting to sign, "We are not, you fuâ"
I shot a glare at Gale who stopped shortly and then bowed as he signed to me. "Sorry, my prince."
I swam up to Halvar, meeting his gaze. He immediately looked down. "Apology, my prince."
I cleared my throat and he looks up. I signed smoothly. "I understand your concernâtrust me, I doâ"
Gale shouted, "Hey!"
I ignored him. "âbut when it comes to war, has Bodhi ever show a less of an exemplary example of being a soldier?"
Halvar cast his gaze down at that, then raised his chin in adamant. "No, my prince, she has not." Halvar signed.
I nodded at him. "There you have it." I faced the mers once again and signed. "We will get out of here soon. Meredith is gifted with immunity and she is attempting to get Bodhi through the outer glamour to get help from the sea."
A young merwoman with a shaved head and dark skin raised from the crowd, revealing her mottled russet tail that took the shape of an eel's tail. She scowled. "You sure are trusting of this human child," She signed with disdain, "Humans are not to be trusted." She was a lieutenant from the House of Eytheria sea also known as the Indian ocean.
I clenched my jaw. "We are fortunate that she is willing to help." And I knew Meredith could be trusted. "Meredith has not betrayed us of our secrets, Lieutenant Malona."
Bubbles erupts from Gale's nose as he scoffed at the merwoman, "Unless you have a better idea?"
Malona glared at Gale. "No, I do not."
"That'll be all then." I signed, dismissing her. I looked to Halvar. "As for what happened, they question my action of what I did earlier and then questioned my identity." I used my hands to tell the mers what had happened in the interrogation room, how I was able to drop my glamour and yet, was still not able to use my powers. I told them of the fake identity I gave them. Then, I informed them of the soon-to-be General Kol, his powers, and how the dark princess was behind it all. Finally, I revealed the true intentions of the dark fay and how they wanted alliances with the Sea Courts.
Mers gasped at that. I caught some signing alliances, dark princess and why.
Jakob signed, "That has never happened before. No fays ever wanted to make peace with us. What could possibly gain from it?"
Clodovea added, "What could they possibly want?"
The mers signed anxiously among them.
Malona raised about the crowd once more, calling attention and the mers stopped to watch. "I am wondering the same thing the dark fay is..." Malona narrowed her dark eyes. "Why did you attack Gale?"
I answered smoothly. "To cause a distraction for Meredith to escape since Meredith was trapped in the storage room with two dark fays."
"But how did you know that she was in danger?" She swims closer to me, her tail moving like a ribbon. "You weren't there."
Nixie moved forward. "I told him that I didn't see Meredith leave."
"And I learned that Meredith was in danger since Nixie told me." I added.
Nixie stopped and stared at me with round eyes. "Thatsâthat is the first time you have lied."
I jerked at that. "It was not a lie."
"You're lying again." Nixie signed.
"Something you want to say, my prince?" Malona crossed her arms.
Gale swam up to float next to me. "You should tell them, ahu."
I turned my back to the mers to sign privately to Gale. "No, I will not." I face them again.
Nixie questioned, "How did you know that Red was in danger?"
Damn, she put me on the spot and I cannot lie myself out of it since she would know. For a six year old, she was scary. I almost feel bad for her future shi-amare. I needed to answer this carefully. "I had a bad feeling as soon as you showed up." I cautiously chose my words.
Nixie blinked. "Truth,"
I wanted to sighed in relief, but I refrained myself. I glared at Malona, "Any other questions?"
"Yes, I actually. One more." Malona swam upward so that everyone can see her hands.
My heart sped up and I had the sudden desire to rip off her hands so she wouldn't ask the question that was to follow. "What is the question, lieutenant Malona?"
"This, Red girl, what is she to you?" She tilted her head. "You seem quite fond of her."
I stilled as my heart stopped and my blood ran cold. I cannot say friends because she was more, but I can't say that I don't care for her because that's not true.
Nixie turned to look at me, waiting for my answer. In fact, all the mers' eyes were on me.
Shit.
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The model is Anh Wisle. I found her photo on pinterest and I added the filter and typography. If you wanna see more design and chapter sneak peek, you can follow Glass Prision's insta at andie_s.e or tumblr at yourandielexxis! I even do poll votes and such where I ask my readers question or opinions of the story, like which mer you wanna know more about or what you want Red to do... etc. :D
If you wanna see Halvar, Malona, Jakob and Clodovea's profile pic, check out my insta!
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